NewsBite

‘Such an ordeal’: Aussie survivors of horrific bus crash in remote Peru jungle touch down on home soil

An Aussie couple who survived a horrific bus crash in Peru and were left stranded for weeks have revealed their “ordeal” trying to get home.

Peru bus crash kills 24 people and injures 21 more

A couple have made it home after surviving a tourist bus crash in Peru that left them injured and stranded overseas.

Stephanie and Jason Rowe arrived back in Brisbane on Saturday nearly two weeks after the bus they were on plummeted down a hill rolling three times before coming to rest on the banks of the Amazon River.

Ms Rowe said the pair were happy to be home after surviving the “carnage” of the crash and all that followed in an interview with 9 News at Brisbane Airport.

Stephanie and Jason Rowe arrived back in Brisbane on Saturday after their horror ordeal. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9
Stephanie and Jason Rowe arrived back in Brisbane on Saturday after their horror ordeal. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9

Ms Rowe said the media coverage of their ordeal helped get them home, speeding up the process and they can now put the incident behind them.

“It helped us get home, the Australian embassy stepped up,” she said.

She tearfully said it was a “pretty massive one” to be home and see the people they loved.

The tour bus Stephanie and Jason Rowe were on rolled down a cliff. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9
The tour bus Stephanie and Jason Rowe were on rolled down a cliff. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9

The crash happened early into the tour according to Mr Rowe who said he believed the driver may have been at fault.

“We were going on a four-day Amazon tour in Peru,” Jason said. “On day one, we figured our driver must have fallen asleep behind the wheel and drove off a cliff.”

Everyone on board survived the crash with the injured survivors having to climb back up the embankment to get rescued, including Mr Rowe who had been knocked unconscious for over 20 minutes.

The survivors had to climb up the cliff and wait on the roadside for rescue. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9
The survivors had to climb up the cliff and wait on the roadside for rescue. Picture: Supplied / Channel 9

Ms Rowe described the accident and her husband’s injury, while stuck in Peru in an interview with 9News.

“I’m going, ‘we’re dead, we’re not coming back, this is how I die, this is how we all die’,” she said.

“He (Mr Rowe) flew into the windscreen and got knocked out and he was out for about 25 minutes.

“There’s people all over the ground, people had broken their arms, people were going into shock.”

Mr Rowe following the accident Picture: Supplied / Channel 9
Mr Rowe following the accident Picture: Supplied / Channel 9

The couple were then stuck in Peru, due to Visa issues unable to get adequate health care, when their story first came to light.

“Here we are waiting, in severe pain,” Mrs Rowe said.

“We have no idea what’s wrong with us. We are in Lima, praying that someone will do something so that we can get home.”

Add your comment to this story

To join the conversation, please Don't have an account? Register

Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout

Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/such-an-ordeal-aussie-survivors-of-horrific-bus-crash-in-remote-peru-jungle-touch-down-on-home-soil/news-story/543aef765528b9e4812b3bd43e048895